At this time of the season, every game carries a life-or-death feel for teams in the NCAA Tournament bubble conversation. They rarely are quite that important—remember, the phrase “body of work” is key—but the tournament selection committee is watching intently. Here’s what they saw on Saturday:

BAD DAY: Kentucky

Outcome: Lost at Arkansas. The Wildcats went into their stretch of four tough closing games knowing it would be a good idea to get three of them. Well, they spent their one allotted defeat Saturday, turning over the ball 18 times against the Arkansas press and falling 73-60.

Kentucky shot 46.5 percent from the field, but the live-ball turnovers and a significant rebounding disparity proved to be enough fuel for Arkansas to overcome its own dismal shooting. It hurt UK to have forward Alex Poythress foul out in just 17 minutes, especially when he was 3-of-3 from the field and scored nine points in such a short stint.

UK was only down three points at the break, but having withstood the first wave of pressure could not sustain success in the final 20 minutes.

Prognosis: Don’t be fooled by that Georgia game the Wildcats play on Thursday. The Bulldogs showed bubble-bound Tennessee they haven’t surrendered on their season, and beating Kentucky this close to the end of the season might be the finest moment they could conjure. Kentucky must be prepared for that night. The Florida game follows terribly soon, at noon Saturday at Rupp Arena. Why the SEC would put the Wildcats into a turnaround so tight is hard to figure. But they must pay attention against UGa or the Florida game might not matter as much.

BAD DAY: Arizona State

Outcome: Lost at Southern Cal. You know what makes for a nice weekend in L.A.? A concert at the Philharmonic. Dinner at The Lobster near the Santa Monica Pier. A show at the Greek Theater if you’re really lucky. You know what doesn’t? Games at UCLA and USC.

The Sun Devils needed a split at minimum from their SoCal trip on the penultimate weekend of Pac-12 play, and they wound up with a sweep—by the Bruins and Trojans. Saturday’s result was most painful, ASU falling 57-56 as a desperate rally left them just short at the end.

Star freshman Jahii Carson scored six points in the final 2:07 and assisted on a basket by Chris Colvin, but Eric Wise’s offensive rebound with 19 seconds left and the two free throws he converted after being fouled secured the win for USC.

Prognosis: The Sun Devils have a huge chance to gain a quality win when they visit No. 11 Arizona next weekend, but that alone is unlikely to be enough. ASU might have to be thinking automatic-or-bust, get as close as they can to that goal during the Pac-12 Tournament and, if they come close, at least they’ll have a right to sweat out Selection Sunday.

BAD DAY: Baylor

Outcome: Lost at home to Kansas State. There’s one second left on the clock. That’s right, a single second. You have possession with a chance to inbound from beneath your goal in a tie game. Can’t lose from there, right? Worst-case scenario is overtime, right?

Oh, apparently not.

The Bears found a way to lose that game to Kansas State, 64-61, without having to play an extra five minutes. How? How could that happen? Easy. The one thing the Bears could not afford to do, they did. Inbounding the ball, senior forward Jacob Neubert tried to throw a long pass in an attempt to get Baylor a game-winning basket before the buzzer. He could have afforded an interception, or a botched catch by a teammate. He could not afford to throw it long. And he did.

The ball traveled over the opposite end line without being touched, and so K-State was able to inbound under its own goal. The Wildcats ran a perfect inbounds play that opened star Rodney McGruder for a 3-pointer—really, now, how does he get wide-open?—and he drained it to drop Baylor to 17-12 overall.

Prognosis: This is likely to be Baylor’s last appearance in the Bubble Watch.

GOOD DAY: Boise State

Outcome: Won at home against Colorado State. Other than a single player just about any college basketball fan can name, what doesn’t Boise State have? The Broncos have won 20 games, are tied for fourth in the tough Mountain West and are riding a four-game win streak.

What they didn’t have before Saturday was a large enough collection of top-50 wins to make the Selection Committee feel at ease. They now are 3-5 after defeating Colorado State, 78-65. CSU is ranked No. 17 in the Ratings Percentage Index, so Boise now has two wins against the top 25.

Prognosis: Boise does have a stout road win over Creighton from back in December, but almost everything else this team has accomplished of note has been at home. There are a lot of home-court heroes this season, not just on the bubble but also competing for prominent seeds. The Broncos’ schedule in the final week gives them a terrific opportunity to gain the sort of victories that could move them firmly into the field.

They visit UNLV for a Tuesday 10 p.m. ET game and then close with a Saturday afternoon home game against San Diego State. A sweep might be all the Broncos need. A split would be nice, but they’d still be a bubble squad.

BAD DAY: Ole Miss

Outcome: Lost at Mississippi State. The Rebels put themselves into the company of Kansas and Michigan, but not in a good way. KU has TCU, the Wolverines have Penn State and now Ole Miss has -- gulp -- Mississippi State.

This is the kind of loss that keeps a team out of the NCAA Tournament field. It’s that simple. Ole Miss hasn’t enough top-field achievement to counter what it did Saturday in Starkville. The Rebels shot 6-of-29 from 3-point range against a team allowing teams to shoot 47.8 percent from the field. Why so many 3s?

Ole Miss now has two losses against SEC bottom-feeders, with this one added to South Carolina. You know who loses to the worst teams in its league? An NIT team.

Prognosis: Ole Miss has Alabama visiting Tuesday in what could be considered an “elimination” game. The winner certainly won’t be in, but the loser almost certainly will be sent on an odyssey to secure an automatic bid in the SEC Tournament. Then the Rebels close with a visit to LSU, which has played well at home and won’t be an easy mark. Just about no one is for this Ole Miss team when it takes to the road.

GOOD DAY: Maryland

Outcome: Won at Wake Forest. The Terps keep hanging onto the dream, outlasting the Demon Deacons in a 10-point win in the same gym where Miami and N.C. State lost earlier this season. It was far from a clean game for Maryland—19 turnovers—but it was a win, and that’s what matters.

Prognosis: Still on the bubble, barely.

BAD DAY: Alabama

Outcome: Lost at Florida. Alabama’s SEC record (now 11-5) looks shiny, but it lacks any sort of quality. Winning at Florida would have changed that, and the Crimson Tide played tough in Gainesville. It wasn’t enough, though. A resume with Kentucky as its best win isn’t going to impress the Selection Committee.

Prognosis: Not good.

GOOD DAY: Oklahoma

Outcome: Won at home vs. Iowa State. The Sooners needed a bounce-back showing after blowing a 22-point lead on the road at Texas in their previous game. This win, by 17 against a good Iowa State team, was much-needed.

Prognosis: The Sooners are pretty solid.

BAD DAY: Tennessee

Outcome: Lost at Georgia. The Vols moved onto the weak bubble with their home win against Florida on Tuesday but undid that with the loss Saturday. Tennessee now has been swept by the Bulldogs, which isn’t a good look for a potential NCAA Tournament team.

Prognosis: Not good.

GOOD DAY: Creighton

Outcome: Won at home vs. Wichita State. This was pretty much a perfect afternoon for the Bluejays. They claimed the regular-season Missouri Valley title and the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament, and Doug McDermott looked like the best player in the country (41 points on 15-of-18 shooting).

Prognosis: This should lock up a bid.

BAD DAY: Iowa State

Outcome: Lost at Oklahoma. Coming off the disheartening overtime loss to Kansas—where the Cyclones played well—Iowa State needed a bounce-back showing. Instead, ISU lost by 17.

Prognosis: The Cyclones pass the eye test, but their NCAA resume needs help.

GOOD DAY: Temple

BAD DAY: Wichita State

Outcome: Lost at Creighton. At one point, the Shockers were 8-1 in the Valley and looking at a possible NCAA seed in the 4-5 range. With the loss at Creighton, they finished 12-6 in league play and could be in trouble come Selection Sunday.

Prognosis: The Shockers better not lose early in the MVC Tournament.

GOOD DAY: Cincinnati

Outcome: Won at home vs. UConn. The Huskies are ineligible for the NCAA Tournament, but this was a quality win. This was a huge win for Cincinnati, which had lost five of six coming into Saturday.

Prognosis: Much better than it was a few hours ago.

GOOD DAY: Massachusetts

Outcome: Won at Xavier. The Minutemen probably are on the wrong side of the bubble right now, but this road win helps, especially after Memphis just lost in the same building recently. Massachusetts hosts Butler on Thursday, and that game could determine its at-large hopes.